USC men’s basketball closed out its non-conference play against the Southern Jaguars on Sunday with an 82-51 win.
From the start, USC was hot on both sides of the basketball. The one who came out blazing though was graduate guard Chibuzo Agbo. He had 18 points in the first half. His four 3-pointers in the first half solidified the lead that the Trojans kept for the entirety of the game.
Besides Agbo, USC had tight defense and held the Jaguars to 27 points in the first half.
“Buzo was great,” head coach Eric Musselman said. “The floor spacing, the ability to make threes is super important to the team.”
Agbo wasn’t the only player who came out ready. He led the first half, but it was a team effort in the second frame. Four players on USC ended up scoring in double digits.
Southern was in foul trouble from the very start of the second half, which led to 35 free-throw attempts for the Trojans across the game.
Graduate forward Josh Cohen was particularly proficient at drawing fouls, with 11 of his 17 points coming from free throws. Eleven of the graduate’s points came across the first five minutes of the second half.
“He was super effective, and he has had an incredible attitude,” Musselman said. “He has been crucial to the way we start games.”
The Jaguars finished with 26 fouls and 19 turnovers. USC converted those turnovers into 27 points, which was another huge reason for its win.
In the second half, the Trojans had a dip in their energy, but that did not matter to the final score. Halfway through the second half, the Jaguars were 1-for-15 from the 3-point line, so they weren’t coming back any time soon.
Still, Cohen emphasized their need to keep their energy up.
“We wanna play well for 40 minutes,” Cohen said. “Even if we’re up big, we have to keep the foot on the gas and get going.”
Junior guard Desmond Claude had 13 points, five assists and four rebounds. Graduate forward Saint Thomas added seven points, eight rebounds and seven assists.
Thomas struggled at the beginning of the season, but he seemed to turn it around in the three games prior, averaging 17 points per game. The graduate forward said he just wants to “be relevant without the ball” and get to the point where he’s “finding ways to help the team without scoring.”
Looking ahead, USC takes on a tough matchup against Michigan. Cohen said that the key to winning the Trojans’ next game is to “bring physicality.”
USC starts its 13-day break until it resumes conference play against Michigan at home on January 4.